


Mind of a Child

by 18lzytwner



Series: ThunderCats Second Series [6]
Category: Thundercats (1985)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-06-21
Updated: 2008-06-21
Packaged: 2019-07-03 20:22:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 13,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15826260
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/18lzytwner/pseuds/18lzytwner
Summary: What happens when Sahara and Leo are forced to take over? Will all the ThunderCats be children in their minds but with adult bodies? Hasn't Lion-O done this before? Only way to find out is to read.





	1. Chapter 1

Sahara stood in the sunshine of the early New Thundera morning at the bottom of the steps to Cat's Lair after her morning run. She was now fifteen and her tall lanky body was much more mature. Her bright hair blew in the breeze and she brushed it away with her slender hands. Without turning, she could feel a presence behind her.

"Thought you could sneak up on me huh?" She asked, not surprised when the response came in the form of a bark.

"You're a crazy old dog aren't you?" The litah couldn't help but smile as her pet enjoyed the attention he was receiving.

"Come on Ma-Mutt, let's go see what Snarf is cooking up for breakfast." Sahara smiled and the two companions headed back inside.

Down in the kitchen, they were greeted by some of the other ThunderCats, some of whom were beginning to show their age.

"What did you say?" Tygra asked Panthro, who had to practically shout back at him,

"Pass the blasted syrup!" At this outburst the orange tiger did so with a comment on how the panther didn't need to shout. It looked as though Panthro was going to blow a gasket when Lea put her hand on his arm.

"Not in front of the little ones." She told him. The panther grumbled about Lea telling him what to do and her response was,

"You know you love it." This led to them kissing and their younger son, Rohon, pretending to throw up. Meanwhile Lion-O sat with Sahara's brother, Leo, trying to prepare him for when he became Lord of the ThunderCats. Despite the fact that Leo was younger than Sahara, he was the only male heir and would be the one with the Lordship thrust upon him when it came time for their father to step down. Cheetara saw her daughter and waved her over as Lea and Panthro's other two children raced around the room trying to tackle each other.

"Get a leash on those kids!" The Queen of Thundera teased.

"I'm seriously thinking of dousing their food with sedatives." Lea shook her head and grabbed her older son and their only daughter and sat them in their seats.

"You're going to eat breakfast and stop behaving like wild animals. After we're done here you're following your father to the shop." The lioness was strict when she had to be.

"Awww, I want to play." The older boy, Panthet, whined.

"Don't be such a baby. Going to the shop is cool." The oldest and only daughter, Mari, said.

"That's my girl." Panthro smiled and gave her a quick hug. This earned Panthet a stuck out tongue.

"Man, kids." Sahara shook her head with a smile.

"You're still one of them, you know." Her mother smiled back.

"I don't feel connected to them. My powers have aged me mentally beyond my fifteen years." The litah argued.

"Yes, I know but you must remember you won't be a kid forever. There may come a time when you have to step up and leave being a kid behind so have fun while you still can." Cheetara reminded her. Sahara nodded in agreement and grabbed a piece of toast off the plate in the middle of the table. She began to pick off the crust and feed it to Ma-Mutt.

"That dog has his own food. Besides crust grows more fur on your chest." The cheetah told her.

"Ewww. Anyway, what are Ben-Gali and Pumyra up to today?" Sahara wondered.

"Well I think they're taking Tyler and Maya out in the tank for the day. I can't remember the last time they had a day off together." Her mother answered.

"About the same time, you and dad did?" The fifteen year old asked with a hint of sarcasm. All Cheetara did was roll her eyes slightly and nod. Evil wise, there hadn't been much going on but running an ever-expanding kingdom had its dark side as well. Sahara was staring off into space when something happened. A picture flashed before her eyes and then just as it appeared, it vanished. Shaking her head, she turned to her mother.

"That was weird." The litah said.

"What?" The cheetah wondered.

"This image flashed before me but I don't know what it means. Did you ever have that happen?" Sahara asked.

"No, but then I've only had my powers for five years." Her mother replied.

"What? You had your powers before I was born, Mom." Sahara couldn't believe the answer she'd just received.

"Mom? I'm not your mom. I'm only ten." Cheetara insisted. Her daughter looked at her with shock. Was she playing around? Then she looked to the other adults in the room and found them experiencing the same thing.

"What's going on?" Mari asked. Her voice gave away that she was trying to be brave but she was obviously scared.

"I have no idea." Sahara replied.


	2. Chapter 2

Quickly, the litah's brain kicked into overdrive. Tyler and Maya were out in the ThunderTank with two kids. He didn't know how to drive the large vehicle yet and she didn't want him to try. Playing with Panthro's baby wasn't exactly the best idea.

"Leo, keep everyone in here, Ma-Mutt you too. Mari, you come with me." Sahara ordered."Right." The younger one answered. There may have been a six-year difference between the two girls but they had formed a strong friendship. Leo stood there, unsure of what to do but he smiled at his faithful pet and said,

"Well you heard her." Ma-Mutt barked and wagged his tail. The ever-living dog ran around the room and picked up his ball.

"Looks like someone wants to play." Leanna smiled.

"I get the ball first!" Tygra shouted as he chased after Ma-Mutt.

"Not fair!" Panthro took off after him. Soon Lion-O and Cheetara joined in. Panthet and Rohon looked over to Leo. It was obvious they were confused.

"Come on guys." The next in line smiled and joined in the chase for Ma-Mutt. Meanwhile, Sahara and Mari headed for the control room.

Once there they found WilyKit and WilyKat behaving like, well ThunderKittens. Sahara shook her head and went over to the radio.

"You guys mind if I make a call?" She asked in all seriousness. Both shrugged and went back to their argument about who could race the fastest on their old Space Boards. Quickly, the litah made the call out to the ThunderTank while Mari looked at the twins in amazement.

"Please tell me, my brothers and I aren't like that." She said.

"Do you really want me to answer that?" Sahara smirked as the ThunderTank came up on the screen.

"Tyler, can you hear me?" She asked.

"Yes, I can. What's going on? Mom and Dad are acting funny." He wanted to know.

"If I knew I'd tell you. Can either one drive the tank back?" Sahara wondered.

"Let me see." Tyler replied before disappearing for a few minutes.

"What of they can't?" Mari asked. Her friend opened her mouth but no words came out. She didn't have the foggiest idea what to do next.

"Dad wants to try but as for being one hundred percent positive…" the pumiger trailed off. Sahara let out a loud sigh.

"All right, try to have him get you back here. If things get ugly, stop and call the control room." She told him.

"You got it." Tyler nodded.

"Good luck and be careful." The litah smiled nervously.

"Will do, ThunderTank out." The call ended and Sahara turned to Mari.

"You stay here with these two and I'm going to check on my brother."

"You got it." The nine year old smiled and nodded as she watched her friend duck back out the doors and head for the dining room.

Over at the black pyramid, it seemed the usual suspect was enjoying himself way too much. Mumm-Ra could not help but laugh as he looked into his bubbling cauldron. The ThunderCats were chasing Ma-Mutt around in the dining room. At some point they started to play fetch.

"I should have thought of this sooner. Not only does it keep those miserable cats out of my bandages, it's amusing as well." He smirked.

"Now for part two." He continued as he grabbed his spell book off the pedestal nearby.


	3. Chapter 3

Ma-Mutt panted heavily before collapsing in the corner of the dining room. He was tired from having everyone chase him around the room.

"Awww, puppy is tired." Cheetara smiled and went over to pet the dog.

"You're a good boy." She told him. This made the ever-living dog perk up.

"Poor little guy. Well what should we do now?" Lion-O asked. There was a shrug from most of the people in the room followed by a few "I don't know"s.

"Hey everybody. How are we doing?" Sahara asked upon entering the room hoping she would like the answer she got.

"We're bored." Panthro frowned. A look of concern crossed the litah's face. Panthet and Rohon appeared to be tired and Leo looked tired as well.

"Uh well why don't we go to the library. I'm sure there are some things to do in there." Sahara smiled and watched for a reaction.

"Ok." Tygra replied and the rest of the group seemed to like this idea.

"Leo, take them to the library. Ma-Mutt, come here please." The teenager said. Instructions given everyone went off to the library leaving only the two behind.

"Thanks for helping out you old scoundrel. Come on, let's check on the ThunderTank." The dog barked and wagged his tail, happy to be walking somewhere instead of running.

"I don't know how much longer, I can keep this up. I mean how long will it be until someone outside the Lair realizes that none of the ThunderCats kept their appointments for the day?" Sahara asked her pooch. All Ma-Mutt did was lick her hand as it swung down at her side.

"I love you too buddy." She smiled and shook her head. Upon entering the control room, she found Mari trying to keep WilyKit and WilyKat from beating the crap out of each other.

"A little help!" The younger girl cried out.

"Jaga give me strength." Sahara muttered under her breath as she went over and yelled at the older twins.

"Break it up you too or I'm telling on you." That seemed to work as they stopped trying to inflict pain on the other.

"Kit, you sit over in that corner." Sahara pointed to the far corner of the room.

"Ha ha." Kat teased.

"You sit over here. Ma-Mutt keep an eye on them." The litah put her foot down. This resulted in Kit sticking her tongue out at her brother. Sahara could see Mari rolling her eyes and plunking herself down in the nearest chair.

"You ok?" Her friend asked.

"Better now that you got those two apart. Geez." The younger girl shook her head.

"Just remember that when your mother has to separate you and Panthet." Sahara teased. Mari raised her eyebrows and turned back to the large monitor on the wall.

"Looks like Ben-Gali didn't forget how to drive the ThunderTank. No calls from Tyler yet." The panion changed the subject.

"That's a good thing. Let me take the controls for a few minutes. I want to check the surrounding area." Her friend said. Mari nodded and let Sahara take the controls. She started with a sector scan hoping that there might be an answer somewhere.

"Snarfer, snarfer." A familiar voice could be heard as the little furry creature entered the control room.

"Snarfer! I almost forgot about you and Snarf. Are you guys ok?" Sahara diverted her attention from the screen.

"We're ok but it doesn't explain what I saw in the library." The younger snarf replied.

"I know things are very weird around here." She told him and then proceeded to explain.

"Sounds like Mum-Ra at work, snarfer, snarfer." He said. That name caused Ma-Mutt's ears to perk up.

"You're probably right but how are we going to defeat him when the adults are acting like children and the children are keeping them in line?" The litah asked.

"Maybe Uncle Snarf will have some words of wisdom. I'll go get him." Snarfer offered before quickly leaving the room to find his relative.

"I hope he's right." The fifteen year old sighed.

"Well we've been doing fine so far." Mari shrugged, trying to keep a positive spin on things. That's when the ground rumbled beneath their feet and the foundation of the Lair shook.

"What was that?" WilyKit questioned from her corner.

"It seems I spoke too soon." Mari's eyes went wide with the picture that popped up on the screen.

"Crap." Was all Sahara said as she saw a giant creature flash onto the screen.


	4. Chapter 4

That momentary lapse was all it took before the litah's brain kicked back into action. She turned to Mari and said, "Go to the library. Get my brother and my father." Quickly the younger girl left the room and Sahara picked up the radio. "Cat's Lair to ThunderTank. Come in ThunderTank." "Tyler here, Cat's Lair. Go ahead."

"We have a serious problem. A giant animal is headed for Cat's Lair. Do all you can to stay away until further notice." Sahara relayed.

"Stay away? You need help. I'm not sitting on my butt waiting for something bad to happen to you. See you in twenty minutes. ThunderTank out." With that Tyler hung up on her. Sahara shook her head at the pumiger's behavior. Never before had he disobeyed a direct order. The control room doors opened to reveal Mari, Leo, Lion-O, and the two snarfs.

"Thank Jaga." She sighed. She could hear the growl of the Sword of Omens; it knew there was trouble.

"What am I supposed to do? The Sword is going nuts." Lion-O's look of fear and confusion was warranted.

"Remove it from the Claw Shield. Call the ThunderCats." Leo told him. The younger minded lion picked the Sword from its resting place and it shocked him violently. A blinding flash of light struck those in the room as Lion-O did one of the things he did best.

"Thunder… thunder… thunder… ThunderCats HO!" As the words escaped from his lips his tone grew deeper and his eyes glowed.

"What in Thundera just happened?" He asked his kids.

"More on that later. We have a more serious situation." Sahara pointed to the screen and the large gruesome creature on it. In a moment the room was full of ThunderCats. Unfortunately they weren't as lucky as the lion had been.

"What are you doing Lion-O? You're going to get us into trouble." Cheetara scolded.

"Too late for that." Panthro spoke up and pointed to the computer. They all stared at it wondering what to do next.

"The ThunderGuard has to have seen the creature and the Cat Signal. They'll be here any minute. In the meantime, Leo and I will head up to the gun bays. Have them meet us up there. Sahara, keep everyone in here. They'll be safer." Lion-O issued his command and everyone followed it.

"Great, I get stuck babysitting while my younger brother goes off to fight." The litah was not pleased.

"You can use the Catapult. That's ten times cooler than the stupid laser guns anyway." Mari pointed out.

"No way, I want to use it." Panthet stuck his nose in.

"Oh no you don't. Sahara is to use it. Now come here Panthet." Snarf put his old nursemaid skills to good use. The young panion made a face and went over to Snarf.

"I hope the ThunderGuard gets here soon." Mari said nervously.

"No time to wonder about them. Be my second in command. I'll aim, you fire." Sahara smiled.

"Yes ma'am." Mari saluted and quickly took her seat.

"Gun One to control room. Come in control room." Lion-O's voice could be heard over the radio.

"Control Room here. Go ahead." His daughter replied.

"Fire on my signal." The lion instructed. Quickly, Sahara aimed the Catapult and motioned for Mari to prepare the missiles.

"Fire!" Came the command. With that lasers and missiles shot into the air striking their target. The smoke cleared and the creature continued onward toward the Lair.

"Fire at will!" Lion-O shouted into the radio. His command was obeyed as the ThunderGuard began to take up their positions at the other guns.

Mumm-Ra chuckled back at the onyx pyramid as he watched the scene unfold. There was something the ThunderCats didn't know about the creature that attacked them.

"By the time they realize that lasers and missiles won't work, it'll be too late and my creature will have destroyed them. Only Thundrainum will weaken my monster." Another evil laugh escaped his lips knowing that the ThunderCats were done for.


	5. Chapter 5

It soon became obvious to the ThunderCats, that lasers or missiles did not deter the very large creature and it continued on its path toward Cat's Lair. Lion-O knew the safety of everyone inside was in jeopardy and that he had to make a decision.

"Leo, you're in charge. I'm going down to ground level." Without another word the Lord of the ThunderCats left his station. Leo's eyes went wide but he continued to command the Thunder Guard. Lion-O made his way down through Cat's Lair and out onto the plaza in front of the steps. There were some old friends he had to awaken.

"Mighty stone ThunderCats, arise! Your Lord commands it!" Lifting the Sword of Omens high into the air, a roar escaped from the Eye of Thundera and the Cat Signal stretched across the sky. The ground underneath the lion's feet quaked and broke apart as four mighty stone giants rose from their positions.

"Defend Cat's Lair!" Lion-O ordered. The four put their left fists to their right shoulders and then turned to face their enemy.

The large creature turned when it felt the ground shake. It's attention turned from Cat's Lair for only a second but that was enough for the stone ThunderCats to get what they wanted. Punches began to be thrown and the stone made the lizard's advance look more like a retreat. Soon they had backed Mumm-Ra's reptilian creation back toward the woods.

Inside the Lair, Sahara told her brother to cease fire as their target was no longer in range. Leo gave the command but told the Thunder Guard to remain at their posts. They all watched as the stone guardians of the Lair continued to beat back the enemy. Then suddenly the lizard creature, which was slightly taller than its opponents, let forth a mighty belch. At first, it sounded funny but it was then that they all realized what the belch had produced, fire.

"That's not good, is it?" Mari asked as the ThunderCats began to turn red with heat.

"No, it isn't. Look." Sahara pointed to the grass and trees around the fighting. The incredibly hot rocks were starting the forest on fire.

"Between that fire breathing lizard and the hot ThunderCats, they could burn everything around us to the ground." Snarfer said.

"We have to do something. I'm tried of sitting back and letting someone else fight for me." Panthro stood up from his chair.

"What are you going to do?" Leanna asked him, a worried look crossed her face.

"I'll think of something." The panther smirked and left the control room. Lea, not wanting to see the attractive panther get hurt, quickly followed.

"Where are they going?" Sahara asked.

"I don't know, but I'm going too." Cheetara put her foot down and in a second was gone.

"Come on!" Tygra shouted as the rest of the kids in adult's bodies left the room.

"Ma-Mutt, cut them off at the pass!" The litah screamed, knowing someone was more likely to get hurt or worse if they went out there. Quickly the ever-living dog sprang into action with his master not far behind, leaving Mari and the Snarfs in the control room. The panion watched as the lizard began to smash apart the stone ThunderCats. She knew that it would only be a matter of time before it was back on it's original path and they had no way of stopping it.

"Jaga, help us." She shook her head and again prepared the Catapult despite its obvious uselessness. Radioing up to Leo, she described the situation. He told her to stay put. He had faith in his sister's abilities. If anyone could bring the others back it was her, at least he hoped so.

Meanwhile, Lion-O saw the band of ThunderCats coming at him and he knew there was no way he could stop them on his own. Quickly he held the Sword of Omens above his head and cried,

"Thunder… thunder… thunder… ThunderCats HO!"


	6. Chapter 6

The ThunderCats stopped in their tracks as the Cat Signal shot into the sky. The stone ThunderCats turned to the Lord of the ThunderCats, which gave the lizard time to hit them, again hard. Large pieces of rock tumbled and slammed into the ground as those that had been whole began to fall apart. Now more Thunder Guard ran from the barracks and would reach Lion-O and the others in a few minutes.

"The Thunder Guard will handle the fires. We have to destroy that creature." He instructed the cats hoping they had turned back into adults. No such luck.

"How are we going to do that? We're so small and he's so big." WilyKit said. The lion knew he was in trouble and that's when he heard the familiar roar of the ThunderTank as it approached from the south.

"Thank Jaga." He sighed, slightly relieved. At this point the Thunder Guard and the commander had arrived and Lion-O instructed them to put the fires out and told them to call up the reserves as well.

"We need all the help we can get." The Lord of the ThunderCats told the cougar.

"Yes, King Lion-O. We're on it." General Courali nodded before heading off with his troops. The ThunderTank had arrived by the end of the conversation and Ben-Gali, Pumyra, Tyler, and Maya had joined the group.

"Glad to see you made it." Lion-O smiled.

"Uh huh." Ben-Gali couldn't keep his eyes off of the lizard creature.

"Mom and Dad have been acting weird." Tyler explained.

"No worries, we'll get them back to normal as soon as we save the day." Sahara tried to be reassuring as she came up behind the pumiger.

"And how do we plan on doing that?" Maya wondered, her voice giving away her fear. There was dead silence.

"Is there an echo in here?" Leanna said trying to lighten the mood as the ground shook beneath their feet signifying the fall of the last of the stone ThunderCats.

"Sahara, can you communicate with it?" Lion-O suddenly had an idea.

"I don't know. I can try." The litah said. Quickly she closed her eyes and focused all her special abilities on the giant lizard that now belched fire in their general direction. Calling out to the large animal, she tried to get through to it.

"I'm not having any luck. Something is blocking me. I…" she didn't finish her sentence as the sudden immense pain in her temples made her scream and collapse to her knees. Tyler was the first one to her and pulled her into his arms.

"Sahara? Are you all right?" She didn't answer his questions as her eyes rolled into the back of her head. Quickly the pumiger felt for a pulse and was relieved when he got a strong one.

"What's wrong with her?" Lion-O quickly rushed to his daughter's side.

"I don't know." Tyler voice was filled with concern. Then the ground nearby erupted into flames. The lizard was practically on their doorstep. From inside the Lair, the sounds of firing commands could be heard and once again a volley of missiles and lasers were launched.

"Everyone inside!" Lion-O commanded. Quickly the group fell back and rushed up the steps to the Lair's main entrance.

"Nothing is working to stop this thing. Tygra, Cheetara, head for the library. Find any books we have on large creatures. Try to find a weakness for this thing. Everyone else head for the hanger. I want all guns firing on this thing." The Lord of the ThunderCats hoped this would buy them some time.

"What are you going to do?" Cheetara asked, worried for the lion.

"Use the Sword." He said flatly before dashing off outside.


	7. Chapter 7

True to his word, Lion-O attempted to use the Sword to drive the creature back. The lion was more of a distraction for the giant lizard and it bought everyone time inside the Lair but it would only last as long as Lion-O could. While the Lord of the ThunderCats fought with the extremely oversized iguana, Tygra and Cheetara threw book around in the library. Nothing they had found came close to their opponent. Neither one wanted to disappoint Lion-O so they continued to look.

"What if this thing isn't in these books? Then what?" The cheetah asked.

"I don't know. Keep looking. I don't know how long Lion-O can hold out." Tygra replied as he threw the book of mystical creatures he was looking at aside. Cheetara let out a sigh and quickly continued on her quest to find something they could use.

Over in the sick bay, Tyler tried to bring Sahara back to consciousness. He only had basic training in the medical expertise area and this was obviously not a basic situation. His mother had promised him she would teach him more as he got older but now he was wishing he'd pushed more.

"Her pulse is normal, breathing normal, color normal. What else?" The pumiger desperately tried to remember. He paced around trying to think of anything to help the litah. He couldn't let her down, especially when they needed all the help they could get. As he continued to struggle, an internal struggle was occurring inside Sahara's mind.

She stood in an empty black space with two doors. However both doors refused to open. Desperately, she tried to break through the barriers that were blocking her path. She wasn't sure where the doors led but anything would be better than where she was. Focusing as hard as she could, the litah used all her special gifts and harnessed their energy. Tygra had once told her she used more of her brain than a normal cat. This could be a gift or a curse depending on if her body could handle it. So far things had worked out pretty well but this would be a big test. Using the energy she collected, she aimed it at the door on the left. A flash of bright light enveloped everything and she shielded her eyes. When she opened them again, she was met with quite the surprise.

"What am I doing outside and so far off the ground?" The litah asked herself. Then she took a better look at her surroundings.

"I'm inside the lizard! That's not good!" She quickly headed back for the doorway but then stopped in her tracks. She couldn't leave now. They still had no way to defeat the creature and a lot of people were going to get hurt if she could have done something but didn't. So she closed her eyes and tried to search for what the lizard feared the most.

Lion-O looked at the lizard, slightly confused. It had stopped moving and closed its eyes. Either it was trying to bring the fire it was spitting up to char him into little lion barbeque or he was finally winning. Not wanting to find out, the Lord of the ThunderCats fired a blast from the Sword of Omens.

The blast broke Sahara's concentration. She quickly used her control over the cold-blooded reptile and grabbed Lion-O off the ground with the lizard's hand. He struggled to break free but she knew that he couldn't get loose. Again she focused and tried to find the information she needed.

Lion-O wiggled and tried to free his arms. The Sword lie on the ground some scary sixty feet away. Falling now would kill him. He was successful in getting his right arm free and he called to his faithful weapon.

"Sword of Omens, come to my hand!" It did as the Lord of the ThunderCats commanded. He was about to use it when the lizard set him down and then headed away from the Lair. Confused, Lion-O just stood there and watched it go.


	8. Chapter 8

Mumm-Ra watched in utter horror as his creation headed away from its intended target. He called to it in a language not heard for over a thousand years but it disobeyed the command. Now furious, he did the only thing he could think of,

"Ancient Spirits of Evil! Transform this decayed form to Mumm-Ra the EVER LIVING!" He cackled. The ancient stone statutes granted his wish and he once again rose from his bandages to his scary form.

"There's foul play afoot and I intend to find out who controls my monster." He said.

"The Mutants and Lunatacs double crossed me before, but this mindless creature should not." The mummy continued as he left the onyx pyramid and headed for the lizard.

Over at Cat's Lair, Ma-Mutt wouldn't sit still. He could feel something was wrong. The ever-living dog left his post in the control room and headed for the sick bay. Upon entering the door, Tyler gave him a look.

"Do you know what's wrong with her boy?" The pumiger asked. Ma-Mutt went up to Sahara and sniffed. A snort escaped his nostrils when he got a whiff of his former master. He growled and looked to Tyler.

"Not good is it?" The boy asked. Ma-Mutt shook his head and howled. Then he ran from the sick bay and headed out of the Lair. There was only one way to stop what was about to happen and that was to return to the pyramid he once called home. Tyler wanted to go after him but he didn't want to leave Sahara alone. Sighing, he chose to stay behind and protect her.

Back in the control room, Lion-O ordered everyone together. The fires were under control now and the Thunder Guard was finishing them off. The stone ThunderCats were destroyed and would have to be rebuilt but there would be time for that later. Lion-O wished he could talk to his comrades but they seemed more like scared kittens. Something had to be done because he knew that the creature wouldn't turn around all by itself.

"Where is Ma-Mutt?" The Lord of the ThunderCats asked, suddenly realizing the dog was gone.

"He took off about fifteen minutes ago. I figured he had to go to the bathroom." Mari shrugged. In the back of Lion-O's mind, he cursed at himself for ever trusting that dog.  _He's back to his old tricks,_  the lion scowled. However his train of thought was broken when Tyler came running into the room.

"Sahara she's gone!" The boy shouted.

"What? How did that happen?" Lion-O asked.

"One minute she was there and then 'poof' she wasn't. I don't know." Tyler said.

"She must have taken over the lizard and now whoever sent that thing is going after her." Leo surmised.

"There's only one being on this planet that has the power to pull her out of there and bring her body too." The Lord of the ThunderCats anger grew.

"Mumm-Ra." Cheetara told them. They turned to her surprised she knew.

"I can't explain it but I feel someone trying to reach out to me. It could be Sahara." The cheetah shrugged.

"Can you communicate with her?" Lion-O wanted to know.

"I can try." Cheetara told them. She focused with all her might and tried to reach out to her daughter. About a minute passed and then her eyes snapped open.

"Mumm-Ra has her trapped near the Thundrainium mines."

"Why is she out there?" Tyler wondered.

"I don't know; that's all I got before I got cut off." Cheetara's eyes began to fill with tears. Something in the back of her head told her things were turning for the worst.

"We have to go save her." Leo put his foot down.

"But Thundrainium will kill us." Panthro said.

"That's why she went there." Lion-O had a revelation. Then without telling anyone where he was going, he took off.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little graphic in this chapter. Those with weak stomachs might wanna look away from the screen.

Quick as a flash, Cheetara followed Lion-O out the door. There was no way she was going to let him go by himself. He was in the hangar when she caught up with him.

"What do you think you're doing?" She asked, not caring if she was speaking inappropriately to the Lord of the ThunderCats. It didn't seem inappropriate to her.

"I have to save our daughter. I'm not going to sit here while Mumm-Ra tries to kill her." He barked at her as he boarded the ThunderStrike. She ignored his tone and continued.

"Then I'm going with you. You can't communicate with her she's not a cat."

"Oh no you aren't. I'm in charge here." The lion said as he revved the engines despite knowing she was right.

"I don't care. I'm not letting you get yourself or anyone else killed." The cheetah put her foot down and jumped aboard before Lion-O could take off. Not wanting to waste any more time, the Lord of the ThunderCats shook his head and took the ThunderStrike to the skies.

Meanwhile, Mumm-Ra confronted his quarry. He'd managed to get the lizard trapped near the mines and could see it weakening. A few more energy blasts from his hands and she'd be his.

"Thought you can defy me didn't you? Well I'll have you know your little plan wasn't so well conceived. I know you're in there ThunderCat cub and I intend to use that to my advantage." The ever-living source of evil told her.

 _What am I going to do? I can feel the Thundrainium getting to me and I don't know how much longer I can hold out in this body,_ Sahara muttered to herself. There was one thing she hadn't tried and it might be her only shot. Forcing the creature to inhale as much air as possible, the litah forced the lizard creature to breathe fire right at the mummy. Mumm-Ra laughed as he deflected the mighty blast back at the creature with the energy that shot forth from his hands. The lizard caught the blast in the chest and fell backwards, knocking into the mighty mountain behind it. Again Mumm-Ra laughed as he approached the downed amphibian.

"Ha ha I win." He smirked before taking his hands and shoving them up the lizard's nose. Then he chanted a spell in a language not heard for a thousand years and with one mighty yank he pulled. Blood from the amphibian shot everywhere and the litah's unconscious body came out of the ripped nasal passages. The creature woke from its comatose state and screamed in pain.

"I'll put you out of your misery." Mumm-Ra set Sahara down and fired another energy blast from his hands. This shot penetrated the skull and ending the lizard's life.

"Now let's take you home. I have some very important things you need to do for me." He told the unconscious teen and with that he flew back toward the onyx pyramid.

Lion-O and Cheetara arrived at the mines to see a scene that greatly disturbed them. The lizard was dead. Landing the ThunderStrike the two hopped out and got a closer look at what had happened.

The scene was disgusting and Cheetara could not help but vomit. That image would certainly never leave her mind.

"Mumm-Ra did this. He killed our baby girl." Lion-O dropped to his knees. The Sword of Omens had roared as they neared their destination signaling that a ThunderCat was in danger and he'd seen the lizard fall down. None of what he saw before him now, did he expect. Cheetara stood from her bent over position and closed her eyes. Perhaps if she could focus, the powers she'd tapped into before would come back to her to comfort Lion-O. Perhaps Sahara wasn't dead. Or perhaps it was only wishful thinking. Either way she had to try to contact the litah. The cheetah tried as hard as she could but nothing came to her. Not even a scent of the girl could be found. Saddened and disheartened, Cheetara dropped to her knees and tried to comfort the Lord of the ThunderCats.


	10. Chapter 10

Meanwhile, Mumm-Ra landed at his pyramid and entered through the secret passageway in the side of the triangular building. He wound his way through the tunnels until he arrived at the place he'd been looking for, the cells.

"Rest here you powerful little she-cat. I do not envy the headache you're going to have when you wake up." The ever-living mummy smirked as he placed inside one of the ancient cells and locked the bars behind him on his way out. Then he turned and headed for the main chamber. Some rest was in order after that trying ordeal.

Upon entering what should have been his final resting place, he immediately sensed something wasn't right. A presence lurked in the darkness.

"So you thought you could come here for your little friend huh? Well I'm not entertaining any of those thoughts, you traitor." Mumm-Ra spoke to the shadows. From his hiding place behind one of the Ancient Spirits of Evil, Ma-Mutt revealed himself.

"What is it to be then? Death by dog? You know you can't kill me, no matter how much you want to." The mummy taunted him, which only made the ever-living dog snarl at his former master.

"Growl at me all you want but you won't be able to stop me by yourself. You don't have it in you." Mumm-Ra shook his head and opened his sarcophagus. It was then that Ma-Mutt charged at his old owner. However, the ever-living source of evil easily deflected his attack with one sharp blow to the dog's midsection.

"Ha! Those ThunderCats have made you soft, you know that move would have never worked." But it seems that was exactly what Ma-Mutt was counting on. From his spot on the ground, near the sarcophagus, he bit down as hard as he could on Mumm-Ra's ankle. A bloodcurdling scream went up and bounced off the high ceiling of the main chamber.

That same scream woke Sahara from her unconscious state and she tried to look around at her surroundings. It was dim and her eyes needed to adjust before she realized, she was no longer inside the lizard's body.

"What happened? Where am I?" The litah wondered, hoping someone was nearby. She was out of luck however when no one answered her. Still a little foggy, she pulled herself up against the back wall of the cell and tried to clear the pain in her head.

Lion-O and Cheetara were on their way back to Cat's Lair in the ThunderStrike when the radio crackled to life.

"This is Leo, come in ThunderStrike." The Lord of the ThunderCats didn't want to pick up the handset but he knew that Leo wouldn't give up until he got a hold of someone.

"This is your father." Was all he said.

"Do you have Sahara?" The young cat wanted to know. Lion-O took a deep breath and prepared to answer. Cheetara put her hand on his shoulder to try to help him through what was about to come next. Then suddenly she cried out and let go.

"What's wrong?" The lion turned to her but got no response.

"ThunderStrike come in." Leo's voice was starting to sound nervous. He was ignored however as Lion-O set the ThunderStrike down to help Cheetara.

"Sahara…" the cheetah mumbled as she held her head. The Lord of the ThunderCats just looked at her in disbelief. Their baby was gone.

"She… she's alive!" Cheetara exclaimed. Lion-O was at a loss for words, this was a mean thing to be doing to him.

"She doesn't know where she is but…" then the cheetah stopped.

"I lost her again. I'm just not powerful enough." She sighed as tears formed in her eyes.

"Can you describe the place?" Lion-O asked.

"I think so." Cheetara said hopefully.

"Then lets get back to Cat's Lair." He told her.


	11. Chapter 11

At Cat's Lair, Cheetara was describing the picture she'd seen in her mind when she last communicated with Sahara. Lion-O didn't like the sound of it especially since it sounded so familiar. In fact, it was inside Mumm-Ra's pyramid, that kind of familiar. To make matters worse, everyone was still mentally not up to speed.

"So what's our plan of attack?" Panthro asked.

"What?" The Lord of the ThunderCats looked at him confused.

"We have to help you get Sahara back. We aren't going to sit here and wait for you to get killed." Leanna stood up next to the panther.

"She has a point. We might not be who we normally are but we still have a job to do." Tygra nodded.

"So it's settled then." Ben-Gali smirked.

"Count me in." Pumyra smiled.

"All right, then I guess I have no say in the matter." Lion-O couldn't help but smile. He could always count on the ThunderCats.

"What's the plan?" Leo asked.

"You're staying here. I'm not having my son and only heir to the title of Lord of the ThunderCats going out to get into trouble. Besides someone has to stay behind to watch the Lair and the little ones." His father told him.

"But…" Leo started.

"But nothing. Your training is not complete. A leader must do what is best for his people, not for himself." Lion-O reminded his son.

"Yes father." The young man wasn't happy with the decision but he knew that his father was right.

"Now as for storming the pyramid…" the Lord of the ThunderCats began with his friends listening in closely.

Meanwhile, Ma-Mutt left Mumm-Ra to bleed and wondered slowly down the passageways of the onyx pyramid searching for the one person who he held dear. Sahara had always been his best friend and he wasn't about to let his ex-master ruin everything. He let out a soft howl hoping that she could hear him.

Immediately, the litah's eyes went wide. Then she quickly went back to squinting as opening her eyes made the headache she had grow worse.

"Ma-Mutt?" She questioned the darkness. It was then that she could hear the tip tapping of claws on the hard stone along with panting. Her furry friend came to the cell and stuck his paw through the bars. Carefully, Sahara crawled over to him and reached her arm through the bars to pet him.

"You old scoundrel. How did you know where to find me?" She asked. Ma-Mutt gave this look that would be best described as a "you've got to be kidding me" look.

"You're right. I should have known." A slight smile crossed her face.

"So how are we getting out of here?" She wondered. Ma-Mutt got up and walked over to the door of the cell. He tilted his head and put his mouth around some of the bars.

"Is that going to work?" Sahara raised an eyebrow. With mighty jowls, the ever-living dog bit down and gave the bars a good yank. Rust and metal bits flew everywhere and lo and behold a hole in the door was produced.

"I can't believe I ever doubted you." The litah smiled as she crawled out through the hole and then tried to stand up. Unfortunately the world was spinning and standing up only made her vomit and want to sit back down.

"Ok, hands and knees it is. Lead on McDuff." She told her faithful companion and the two went to find a way out.


	12. Chapter 12

The ThunderCats arrived at Mumm-Ra's pyramid jammed into the ThunderStrike and ThunderTank. Everyone jumped out of their respective vehicles hoping that they hadn't cramped up from the ride.

"I'll be so glad when everyone is back to normal." Lion-O sighed as he bent backwards and cracked his back.

"You said it." Tyler replied. He had helped his father drive the Tank over.

"I'm sure Leo will never let me forget that you got to go on this mission and he didn't." The Lord of the ThunderCats said bluntly.

"That maybe true but his life is more valuable than mine." Tyler gave the lion a nod and then headed for his parents. It was probably a good thing that he did because Lion-O wasn't sure how to respond to that.

"Shall we?" Panthro asked, eager to flex his large muscles. Lea gave him a look and said,

"After you big boy." He gave her a confused look and this let Lion-O step in. He pushed the not so secret panel on the outer wall of the pyramid and the secret passageway revealed itself.

"I take you've done this before?" Ben-Gali smirked.

"More than I want to count. Come guys, lets go." The lion showed everyone the way in and quickly the group was off and running down the hallway.

Meanwhile the going was slow for Ma-Mutt and Sahara. Crawling on her hands and knees was beating her body up but standing up led to having the contents of her stomach come back up. That being realized there wasn't much they could do especially since the litah didn't know how much more her stomach held anyway.

"We have to take a break, my kneecaps are killing me." She said. Ma-Mutt turned back from his position in the front of her and nudged her with his nose. He wanted to continue, unsure if Mumm-Ra was behind them.

"I know, we gotta keep moving. All right but when we get home, you'd better wait on me hand and foot." She teased. The ever-living dog licked her face as a sign that he promised and they continued on.

In the main chamber, Mumm-Ra slowly lifted himself off the ground as the Ancient Spirits of Evil continued to yell at him.

"You let that traitorous dog back in here, the girl has escaped from her cell, and the ThunderCats will be upon you in a matter of minutes. Get up you old fool!" The ever-living mummy gave the statues a dirty look and hobbled to the edge of the cauldron. The water began to boil and bubble and an image shimmered into view.

"Ma-Mutt is taking that she-cat out the back way. The ThunderCats will never intercept them. This could work to my advantage." He smirked, an evil look in his eye. That's when Lion-O entered the room followed by the rest of the ThunderCats.

"How nice of you to drop by uninvited." Mumm-Ra gave them a look.

"Where is Sahara you bundle of bones?" Panthro spoke up.

"Why should I tell you?" The mummy played coy.

"Maybe because I would regret using the Sword on you." Lion-O was in no mood as he withdrew his mighty weapon from the Claw Shield.

"Ah yes the old ThunderCat bluff. Slay me if you wish but I will never tell you anything. Besides I've already encountered Ma-Mutt and he's more dangerous than you." For the first time, the ThunderCats could see what the mummy was talking about.

"Good for him, he bit you." Pumyra couldn't help but smirk.

"It seems you can teach an old dog new tricks." A smile crossed Lion-O's lips.

"Joke all you want but right now he's leading Sahara into a trap. One of my personal favorites, actually. A little thing called the tiger pit." With a wave of his hand, Mumm-Ra showed them what he spoke of in the pool.

"So save them or kill me, your choice." The mummy continued.


	13. Chapter 13

Ma-Mutt and Sahara continued on, oblivious to what was occurring in the main chamber. The ever-living dog continued to sniff the ground and look around; making sure it was safe for the litah to continue. Suddenly he stopped in his tracks and growled.

"What is it boy?" Sahara asked. Ma-Mutt's answer was to growl at what lay in front of them.

"Not good huh? So what now?" His master wondered. The dog turned upward knowing it was Mumm-Ra's fault.

"You try my patience. Make your choice, ThunderCats." The mummy smirked. Lion-O glared at him. In the back of his mind he knew that many times before they had tried to be rid of Mumm-Ra and many times he'd come back. Nothing had changed, now all that mattered was saving Sahara.

"You get to live another day, mummy but I swear on everything holy I will kill you. It may not be today or tomorrow or even next week but I  _will_  find a way." The Lord of the ThunderCats promised.

"I look forward to it cat. Now follow the tunnel and you'll find them." Mumm-Ra pointed in the direction of the cells tunnel. Lion-O pointed his head in the direction of the passageway and the others took off, hoping they weren't too late. The lion followed after giving Mumm-Ra a look of disgust. Once they were out of earshot, the ever-living source of evil smirked and laughed to himself.

"Fools. That 'Code' of theirs will get them killed yet." He shook his head and as quick as he could, made his way to his sarcophagus.

Charging down the tunnel, Tyler took note of the damaged cell bars. He made a mental note to never piss the dog off again before his thoughts turned to Sahara. The pumiger hoped they would be in time.

Lion-O moved his way through the group until he was out in front. He knew these tunnels better than anyone at the moment and he didn't want them to get turned around. Looking behind him, he saw the looks on everyone's faces filled with worry.

"Good gravy, Ma-Mutt. Do you feel that?" Sahara asked as her companion nodded. She could feel the vibrations in the floor. There were too many to distinguish what exactly was charging at them.

"Either there is some creature with lots of legs coming or a group of something. I think we're in big trouble." She said. Ma-Mutt growled slightly and put himself in front her.

"I suppose you'll protect me?" She smiled trying to lighten the mood. The dog nodded and then pushed her toward the way out.

"I'm not leaving you here. I love you, you silly dog. We're going out together." Sahara told him. The ever-living canine rolled his eyes and turned to face what was coming. Both could feel the floor almost moving underneath them. What was heading their way was practically there.

"Ready buddy?" The litah asked. Ma-Mutt set his jaw and moved into pouncing position. He wasn't going down without a fight and as the first thing rounded the corner he attacked.

"STOP!" A familiar voice called out just as Ma-Mutt's jaws came down on the arm of the attacker. However no scream came and the dog made a gagging sound.

"Good thing I was wearing the Claw Shield." Lion-O commented as he stepping closer and Sahara could see her father's face in the dim light.

"Let him go boy." She told Ma-Mutt who only happily did so.

"Remind me not to watch out for those teeth. That's the second person he's bitten today." The lion smiled as he scooped his daughter up. This caused Sahara to look at her pooch.

"Well I'm just glad you found us. I want to go home." She said.

"Sounds good, come on we can't go out this way." Lion-O told her.

"Why not?" She gave him a confused look.

"Mumm-Ra set a trap around here. We had to make a choice and I'd say we made a good one." He smiled at her. It was then that Ma-Mutt took off down the tunnel.

"What is he doing?" Panthro asked.

"We have to go after him. Come on!" Tyler didn't wait to be told "no" and took off. Quickly the group followed and realized the exit was only a few hundred feet away.

"What trap were you talking about?" Sahara asked.


	14. Chapter 14

To say Lion-O was angry about being duped would have been an understatement. He should have known better. Now there was a decision to make; go back and show Mumm-Ra the meaning of pain or try to get the others back mentally before teaching the mummy a lesson he'd never forget. Sahara could see her father's dilemma and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Home first. Kick butt later." She told him.

"You know sometimes I swear it's your mother talking." He shook his head.

"Well you know what Mom would say." The litah smirked. "All right you win, lets get you home." Lion-O nodded. Letting Ma-Mutt do the honors, the Lord of the ThunderCats had everyone out of the pyramid and on their way back to Cat's Lair.

Upon arriving at the fortress, Lion-O took Sahara to the medical bay while the others gathered in the conference room. Hopefully they could get to the bottom of this.

"I want you to rest. Somehow Mumm-Ra used your powers against you and I don't want you endangering yourself until we figure out how to stop him." He told his daughter.

"You'll get no complaints from me. Everything is still spinning and my head is killing me." Sahara said, thankful her father left the lights off.

"All right. Rest and I promise I'll get things turned around." The lion promised.

"You always do." She smiled and watched him walk out of the room. Ma-Mutt lay on the floor nearby to keep an eye on her.

"You know you can't protect me all the time." The litah looked to her pooch, who rolled his eyes again. She had no idea.

Back in the conference room, the others were discussing their options when Lion-O walked back into the room. He could see they were getting anxious.

"We could smack somebody upside the head and see if that works." Panthro suggested.

"Yeah and give someone permanent brain damage." Tygra retorted. The panther made a move to smack the tiger but Leanna stopped him.

"Don't even think about it." She gave him a look.

"Since when do you boss me around?" He asked.

"Since I married you, you idiot!" She yelled at him. That made everyone go quiet and they turned to Lion-O.

"She is correct. Lea and Panthro are married and have three children. You met them, Panthet, Mari, and Rohon." The Lord of the ThunderCats figured he couldn't sugar coat it anymore. Panthro gave one of those 'I did what with her' looks. This made the lion chuckle, as he knew how much they enjoyed their private time together. On the other side of the table, Ben-Gali looked at Pumyra. He knew something wasn't right with her as she clenched her fist again for the twelfth time in the last five minutes and she kept biting her lip.

"So what else don't we know?" Cheetara looked at him.

"There is quite a bit but we don't have time to discuss it. If we are to launch a strike against Mumm-Ra, I need all of you back the way you were. I still don't understand why the Sword didn't free you as it did me." He shook his head.

"It doesn't make any sense, I agree. The Sword is very powerful." Tygra nodded as he hauled a stack of books onto the table from the floor.

"What is all that?" WilyKit asked.

"I've been reading. Nowhere in our past has anything like this occurred and I can't figure out how to reverse it." The tiger explained.

"A similar event occurred when we first landed on Third Earth." Lion-O said.

"I read about it. Which could explain how you were able to break whatever is going on but I'm not one hundred percent about that." Tygra said and then explained to everyone the well-known occurrences of the crash landing, all those years ago.

"The space capsules age your body, not your mind, hence why I don't think they will work here." The tiger finished.

"I know this has to be Mumm-Ra's doing but to break the spell would require someone as strong as him. There is only one person who could help us." Lion-O spoke up, not believing he didn't think of this before.

"Who?" WilyKat wondered.

"Mumm-Rana. She is Mumm-Ra's opposite in every way." The lion explained.

"Then we must go to her and see what can be done." Ben-Gali spoke up as he took Pumyra's hand in his under the table.

"Yes, I just hope she can do it, otherwise we're back to square one." Lion-O sighed.


	15. Chapter 15

The group arrived at the white pyramid and was welcomed by its massive doors. While the others took it all in, Lion-O led them to the main chamber.

"Ah Lord Lion-O, it has been awhile. What causes you to grace me with your presence?" Mumm-Rana spoke from her seat near her sarcophagus.

"I'm afraid we're in trouble and I don't know how to fix it." He said.

"Well then you've come to the right place. What exactly is the problem?" She asked. The lion quickly explained and quickly proved his point when Panthro and Tygra started smacking each other around after the tiger said something derogatory about the panther's mother; the two had been squabbling since the incident in the conference room. Unsure of how to use their massive fists they were slapping at each other but standing at almost arm's length. Ben-Gali was laughing so hard he was rolling on the ground. Lea tried to break it up but Tygra hit her. This enraged the panther even more and quickly before Panthro could get his hands on the orange tiger, Lion-O and Mumm-Rana stepped in.

"I see what you mean; children in adult bodies. Seems like you already solved that problem." The sorceress gave a wink.

"Yes well, they don't have twenty years to grow out of it." Lion-O's joked.

"Indeed. Let me see if I can help. No doubt Mumm-Ra is behind this." She nodded.

"Does Snarf love Candy Fruit?" The lion joked again. A slight chuckle came from Mumm-Rana and she turned to her sarcophagus and pulled out a book.

"A new accessory?" The Lord of the ThunderCats wondered.

"Only in case of an emergency. Now then a spell reversal may work although I'm not sure if the results will be permanent, it depends on how Mumm-Ra cast his spell. Let's see." She explained. Flipping through the book, she found what she was looking for.

"What once was old is now young, wisdom lost for an age to come. Set right what was wronged, give knowledge back to those who seek it." The spell chanted Lion-O looked to his friends. They all looked dazed and confused.

"How do we know it worked?" He wondered.

"Ask them something only the adults would know." Mumm-Rana suggested.

"Who is next in line for Lord of the ThunderCats?" Silence filled the room as they shook their heads.

"I'm guessing that didn't work. The answer should have been Leo." Lion-O turned to the sorceress.

"Hmmm, then perhaps the spell is stronger than I thought. This could take awhile." Mumm-Rana shook her head.

"How long are we talking?" The lion asked.

"At least an hour or so. I have to see if there is a special reversal I need to use of if the only other option is…" she trailed off.

"What is the only other option?" Lion-O didn't like her tone.

"Let's just say it would involve a journey to another pyramid, finding a book, and using that to reverse everything." She sped her words up.

"That's the other option?" He gave her a look.

"I'm afraid so. But hopefully I can find something in my book." Mumm-Rana tried to sound hopeful.

"Let's hope so for all our sakes." Lion-O swallowed hard. The mission she spoke of would be dangerous and he'd have to go it alone. He wasn't about to put the rest in danger.


	16. Chapter 16

Much to Lion-O's chagrin, nothing the sorceress did would change the ThunderCats mentally back into adults. He looked to Mumm-Rana and shook his head.

"Can you baby-sit?" He asked.

"You shouldn't go alone Lion-O." She told him.

"It doesn't seem as though I have much of a choice. We have to do something. Besides Ma-Mutt practically chewed his ankle off so he shouldn't be too hard to handle." The lion joked.

"Go then and be careful. I will continue my search." Mumm-Rana nodded and then watched the Lord of the ThunderCats leave the white pyramid.

"What's the matter boy?" Sahara asked as Ma-Mutt perked up his ears. The dog seemingly ignored her as he placed his ears to the ground. He could feel the vibrations and hear the roar of the ThunderTank. Sahara's interest was piqued and she got down on the floor. She too could hear the Tank.

"Coming home finally?" She wondered. That's when her brother walked into the sick bay.

"I can't raise the ThunderTank on the radio and it's turned away from the Lair." Leo told her. At this Ma-Mutt took off out of the room and down the hallway.

"Where's he going?" Leo asked.

"To join the ThunderTank. There's only one place it could be heading in that direction." Sahara shook her head.

"Mumm-Ra." Leo said.

"Bingo and since the ThunderStrike's engines aren't behind it, there is only one explanation." His sister confirmed.

"He wouldn't." The boy couldn't believe it.

"He would, that's why Ma-Mutt went after him. For Jaga's sake, I hope he doesn't get himself hurt." Sahara told him.

"What do we do if he does? Or worse?" Leo didn't want to think about it.

"Then pray to Grandpa Claudis to help you be the Lord of the ThunderCats." His sister told him.

Lion-O arrived at the onyx pyramid and jumped out of the ThunderTank. Behind him he heard a thud and quickly turned around.

"Ma-Mutt, you old hound. I thought you were keeping an eye on Sahara." He said. The dog looked at the pyramid and then to the lion and shook his head.

"So I'm guessing you thought keeping me out of trouble was more important. Well come on, we have a book to get." Lion-O smiled and the two entered the pyramid.

"Damn that dog! Loyal to a fault. Well if he thinks that I'm going to go easy on him, he'd better forget it. As for the lion, he'll make a good throw rug." Mumm-Ra cursed as he watched the bubbling waters in front of him display the intruders.

"Now then, Ancient Spirits of Evil…" he started his spell and was soon transformed into Mumm-Ra the ever living.

"Now to wait for those bumbling idiots to come. It shouldn't be long and I'll teach them the meaning of pain." The mummy smirked as he picked a hiding place.

Meanwhile the Sword of Omens growled, warning of danger. Lion-O pulled the Sword from the Claw Shield and took a look.

"Ah so our foe lies in wait. Well how about we make a plan. Ma-Mutt you find the book and get it to Mumm-Rana. I'll deal with Mumm-Ra. Once the ThunderCats are back to normal, send them here. If I'm not dead then they'll be good backup and if I am then someone needs to avenge me. Either way, it seems to be a win-win situation." The lion gave a smirk and Ma-Mutt shook his head. He would do as his master ordered but he certainly wasn't going to let Mumm-Ra kill the lion. Despite their past troubles, the dog grew fond of chewing on Lion-O's slippers and getting yelled at. The dog chuckled to himself as the two entered the main chamber.


	17. Chapter 17

Immediately Ma-Mutt could tell there was something wrong. He could feel it and he quickly let Lion-O know by growling.

"What is it boy?" The lion whispered hoping for a sneak attack. That was ruined when Mumm-Ra emerged from behind the nearest Ancient Spirits of Evil statue.

"Well well if it isn't the cub and my traitorous dog come to fight me. Kind of sad the way things have turned out haven't they? I'm guessing by now you've already figured out there is only one way to break my little spell." The mummy smirked. Lion-O's answer was to point the Sword of Omens in his foe's general direction.

"Ah then fight we will. Hope you made funeral arrangements before you left." Mumm-Ra lunged at the Lord of the ThunderCats and the two begin to fight. This gave Ma-Mutt the opportunity to go look for the spell book. Hopefully, the mummy had kept it in the same place he always had, behind his sarcophagus.

Lion-O blasted Mumm-Ra with the Sword of Omens and the mummy returned the favor with energy blasts from his hands. It knocked the lion backward and gave the ever-living source of evil time to pull the Sword of Plundarr from his cloak.

"How fitting that you should be finished off by the same sword that destroyed your planet." Mumm-Ra smirked.

"Guess again bone bag." Lion-O retorted and fired a shot from his spot on the floor. It glanced off of the Sword of Plundarr and slammed into the animal statue next to the mummy. A crack formed in the stone. Mumm-Ra made a note of the crack and knew that if one statue were to be destroyed then his powers would weaken. His sore ankle reminded him he had to keep the statues safe.

"That was a little below the belt wasn't it Lion-O?" Mumm-Ra asked.

"I told you I'd find a way to be rid of you and if that means bringing your pyramid down around your ears then I'll do it." The lion said.

"Even if you're inside?" Mumm-Ra asked as he lashed out with the Sword of Plundarr, narrowly missing the lion's midsection.

"So be it. HOOOOO!" He shouted and aimed the beam at the statue again as the crack that had formed began to widen and send little cracks all the way through the stone effigy.

"You'll pay for that whelp." The mummy took another swing at Lion-O with the double-ended sword. This time he managed to put a large gash in the Lord of the ThunderCats' leg. Blood began to flow from the wound and Lion-O ground his teeth in pain.

"HOOOO!" He cried out and his blast bounced off Mumm-Ra's headpiece and onto the statue. The mummy cried out in pain and the Ancient Spirits of evil were down to three and a half as the bottom of the massive animal likeness crumbled. This gave the lion the opportunity to use the Sword of Omens to seal up the leg wound. It hurt like hell and the possibility of a deadly infection was high but if he didn't stop the bleeding he'd be dead anyway.

"You'll pay Lion-O." Mumm-Ra told him and raised the Sword of Plundarr high. Just as he was about to bring it down upon the Lord of the ThunderCats, the mummy screamed out in pain. Lion-O looked and saw that Ma-Mutt had latched his mighty jowls onto the ever-living source of evil's rear end.

"Take that." Lion-O smiled as he saw the book that Ma-Mutt had brought out nearby. As fast as he could he went for it.

"Come on, Ma-Mutt." The lion began to hobble toward the escape route. The dog let go of his former master and hurried after Lion-O as Mumm-Ra sank to the ground as blood flowed from the teeth marks in his posterior.

"I'll get you and your little dog too!" He shouted after them as he transformed back into his decayed old self.


	18. Chapter 18

Lion-O hopped into the ThunderTank as best he could and started the journey back to Mumm-Rana's white pyramid. He hoped that she could find the spell that would bring the others back to their old selves. He also hoped they'd seen the last of Mumm-Ra for a while.

"Well Ma-Mutt we certainly have had enough excitement in the last week huh?" The lion smirked as the dog leaned his head out the side of the Tank, drool flying everywhere.

"Panthro isn't going to be too happy about the mess you're making but I think he'll live," Lion-O chuckled as he shifted the tank into a higher gear and picked up speed.

At Cat's Lair, Leo came running from the control room into the sick bay. Sahara gave him a look and waited for him to speak.

"The ThunderTank just blew by here. Must be on their way back to Mumm-Rana's." He said.

"Good, now would hand me that barf bowl?" The litah asked as she could feel her stomach bile rising in her throat. Quickly her brother handed her the sterile metal bowl and held her hair back.

"Do you want me to get Snarf? Maybe he knows something that would help with the dizziness." Leo suggested.

"Sounds good. I'm not sure how much more of this my system can take." She nodded slightly and then lay back down. She hoped that the others would be back soon and Tygra or Pumyra would have the answers to her problem.

Lion-O and Ma-Mutt arrived at Mumm-Rana's pyramid and went inside as fast as they could. Needless to say, the sorceress was glad to see them.

"They are driving me crazy. I hope I can find that spell quick." She said.

"That would be great. Not sure how Snarf would handle everyone being like this." The lion agreed. Mumm-Rana flipped through the ancient book, able to read the strange ancient language.

"Ah here we go." She smiled and raised her arms above her head. Chanting in the ancient language only known to those who have lived for a thousand years, Mumm-Rana cast the reversal.

"How can we tell if it worked?" The lion wondered. Before the sorceress could answer, Lion-O found himself on the floor with Cheetara on top of him. She pressed her lips hard onto his.

"It's good to have you back." He smiled when they parted.

"You have no idea." She smirked. A great big smile crossed his face and the two stood up. That's when she noticed the marks on his leg.

"What happened?" Concern evident in her voice. He didn't answer as Ben-Gali came over and shook his hand.

"You crazy son of a gun." The white tiger smirked.

"You're welcome." Lion-O teased. Over in the corner Lea and Panthro were all over each other. Finally Tygra came over and broke them up. He gave them a dirty look and they joined the others around Lion-O.

"Where are the kids?" Pumyra asked after a few minutes.

"At home. Tyler and Leo are looking out for them." He explained.

"What about Sahara?" Cheetara asked now even more concerned.

"I'll explain on the way. Let's go home." Lion-O smiled.


	19. Chapter 19

Once everyone was back at the Lair there were hugs being given in every direction. The kids were glad that didn't have to be in control anymore and the adults were happy to find that no one was seriously hurt. Tygra had headed directly to the sick bay to take a look at Sahara.

"I was wondering when the cavalry was going to show up." She gave a slight smirk as the tiger entered the room and Snarf heaved a sigh of relief.

"You have no idea how good it feels to be me again." Tygra smiled back at her before continuing.

"Now your father explained the situation but I'm not sure how I can help. Mumm-Ra forcibly extracted you from his creation and that is causing your head to spin but I would have expected that you would be confused about who you are and you're not." The orange tiger explained.

"You mean my head might think I was the giant lizard?" Sahara asked.

"Exactly. Internally your consciousness should be fighting over which body you really belong to." Tygra nodded.

"Well since the lizard is dead, I pick me." The litah joked.

"Excellent choice. Now as for easing the dizziness, have you been able to keep anything down?" He asked.

"I'm afraid I've managed to gross out my brother beyond belief. Even Tyler has been staying away from me." She told him.

"Well then we'll have to go the injection route." Tygra said.

"Needles? Lovely." She replied to his nod.

"Sorry but that's how it goes. Let me talk to Pumyra and I'll see about whipping something up." The tiger smiled again and promised to be back soon. Upon his exit, in walked her mother, brother, and father followed by Ma-Mutt.

"How are you feeling sweetie?" Cheetara asked as she sat down on the bed next to her.

"I've been better especially after Tygra mentioned needles." Sahara made a face that made her mom laugh.

"No worries, I'll be here for you." The cheetah smiled.

"I see you brought my dog back in one piece." Sahara looked to her father as Ma-Mutt took up his position near the bed.

"Yes well, you'll have to thank him for bring me back in one piece." Lion-O smirked.

"Uh huh so mom dragged you down here to get your leg checked out?" The litah hadn't missed the burn marks on his leg.

"That and I had to see my princess." He teased.

"Oh well that's a good enough reason." She smiled and saw her brother looking around.

"Missing something?" She asked.

"Yeah, the barf bowl. All this mushy stuff is making me sick." Leo chuckled.

"Yes well I get it first when you find it. I think my stomach is ready again." Sahara wasn't kidding and luckily Leo had managed to retrieve it before she threw up on Cheetara.

"Seems we're just in time." Pumyra said as she walked into the room with Tygra.

"Told you I couldn't keep anything down." The litah said as she tried to get rid of the taste of bile in her mouth.

"I'd say IV hydration and some good old fashioned Thunderian dizziness cure ought to help out." The puma nodded and headed for the chemicals she needed.

"You, on the exam table." Tygra pointed to Lion-O.

"I knew that was coming." The lion shook his head and hobbled over to the table.


	20. Chapter 20

The sun had set and the ThunderCats had thankfully climbed into bed. Things had been rough before but they were all feeling especially tired.

"The kids are in bed." Lea moved her eyebrows up and down at the panther who sat on his side of the bed.

"So no distractions then." He smirked, immediately grasping her meaning as he got up and walked over to her.

"You made a face earlier when I had said something." She teased as she wrapped her arms around his strong neck.

"I was a boy then. As you can see I'm all man now." The panther took her lips in his.

"Mmmm, well then how about showing me how much of a man your are." The lioness couldn't help but smirk as she moved away from him and toward the bed.

"Sounds good. Lets make sure the kids won't interrupt." Panthro went to the automatic door and changed the setting to "Locked, only open upon sound of emergency."  _Jaga I love that setting_ , he thought as he quickly turned his attention to his wife.

Meanwhile, Ben-Gali and Pumyra lay quietly in their room. Normally they would be following in the lioness's and panther's footsteps but they had something to discuss.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Ben started.

"I didn't want to worry you. I thought I could handle it on my own but obviously not." Pumyra let out a sigh.

"It's my job to worry. I'm your husband." He told her as he gently pulled her close.

"And I love you for that. You've always taken care of me since Thundera was destroyed. We've been through a lot and I had hoped this last injury would just go away as the others had." She forced a smile and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"You aren't healing properly and I want you to promise me you'll talk to Tygra in the morning." The white tiger said.

"I promise." Pumyra nodded.

"Good." Ben-Gali kissed the top of her head and the couple fell asleep. Not far down the hall a similar discussion was going on between the Lord of the ThunderCats and his Queen.

"You could have gotten yourself killed and then where would we be?" Cheetara asked, very concerned.

"Leo is more capable than he lets on and he'd have everyone to help him. I had to save the ones I love." Lion-O argued.

"I'm not saying you shouldn't have. Jaga knows if Mumm-Ra had won Third Earth and New Thundera would be doomed. I just wish you didn't have to do it alone. I love you, you crazy lion. I need you. The kids need you and of course the ThunderCats need you." She said. At this, Lion-O pulled her onto the bed, where he'd been sitting as Tygra had ordered.

"Look at it this way, Sahara should be out of the infirmary tomorrow, in a few weeks my leg will be better, and everything will hopefully be quiet for awhile after Ma-Mutt's brilliant attack strategy. That dog saved my life but tell him that. He'll think I'm getting soft." The lion smirked and pulled Cheetara closer.

"Besides I thought you were happy to see me earlier." He said.

"I was but didn't Tygra tell you to take it easy?" She wondered.

"I can start tomorrow." The Lord of the ThunderCats grinned.

"Oh you are naughty. Tygra will have our heads if this delays your recovery." She teased.

"I think I can live with that." He said.

**WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW**

Mumm-Ra tried his best to lie on his stomach inside his sarcophagus. His behind wasn't doing much better than earlier but at least the bleeding had stopped. With one of the Ancient Spirits of Evil damaged, he would heal one-fourth slower than normal. His ankle still hurt and he was angry.

"You'll pay Ma-Mutt. You and the ThunderCats. When I get better lookout."


	21. Chapter 21

It was still early in the morning but Tyler couldn't sleep. He stared up at the ceiling for a little while before deciding to get up and go for a walk around the Lair. His padded feet wound up outside the med-bay doors where just beyond Sahara was sleeping. An audible sigh escaped his lips as his brain debated on whether he should go in or not. The pumiger's brain screamed, " _Are you crazy?_ ", while his heart yelled, " _Get in there!_ ". That's when the doors opened and Sahara stood there in front of him.

"So you coming in or am I going to have to listen to you sighing all day long?" She asked.

"You heard that?" He wondered now unsure of how loud it was.

"I can always tell when you're around." The litah smirked as she pulled him into the room."I was just coming to check up on you. I felt bad about leaving you yesterday." Tyler said.

"Someone had to care for the others, especially the little ones." She nodded knowingly and sat back down on the bed.

"So my mom's stuff really works huh?" He asked as he took a seat next to her.

"Your mom is quite the miracle worker. I'll have to thank her later but there is something else on your mind isn't there?" Sahara saw right through him. Not sure of what to say, he just sat there with a weird look on his face. She got close to him and placed a kiss on his cheek.

"When you're ready big boy, I'll be waiting." The litah couldn't help but smile as she stood up and woke Ma-Mutt who'd been sleeping under the bed. She didn't get far as Tyler grabbed her arm and pulled her to him. Nothing was said between them as he kissed her lips.

Later, Pumyra and Ben-Gali walked into the med-bay to talk to Tygra and found the tiger wasn't there but that their son and Sahara were sitting together talking.

"Morning everyone. I trust you're feeling better." Pumyra smiled.

"Yes, thank you. Now if you'll excuse me. This puppy has to go out." Sahara pointed to the door and Ma-Mutt.

"Yes of course. Have a nice walk." Ben-Gali smiled and Tyler spoke up.

"I'll go with you." The two were out of the door faster than the tiger could shake a fist at them.

"Hmm…" he said and looked at his wife.

"Sorry I'm late. So what seems to be the problem?" Tygra asked.

"I'm not healing properly. That last injury I received a few weeks ago isn't going away. I figured since it was near one of my earlier ones it was just taking longer but this is getting ridiculous." Pumyra said.

"All right let's have a look see." The orange tiger pulled out a scanner and gave the area near her stomach a pass over.

"Uh huh. Well it seems something is pressing on the stitches I put in. I'm going to run an ultrasound to get a better look." Tygra explained as he grabbed the piece of equipment and some jelly.

"What could be pressing up there?" The puma wondered. Tygra's answer was to smile.

"Uh you want to fill us in?" Ben-Gali asked now getting nervous.

"I'll run a blood test to confirm but it looks as though someone is pregnant." The orange tiger continued to smile.

"At my age?" Pumyra's voice quivered slightly.

"It's certainly possible. I should think you're almost two months along. You didn't show because the cub is developing near your left tube. Which is why it is pressing on the stitches in your stomach and intestinal region." Tygra said. Both Ben-Gali and Pumyra looked at each other.

"So do you want to surprise everyone at breakfast?" The tiger asked.

**WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW**

While the ThunderCats were celebrating, Mumm-Ra was cursing. His behind wasn't any better than yesterday and his ankle was all swollen. Mumbling under his breath, he looked at the broken statue of one of the Ancient Spirits of Evil.

"I don't even have the strength to fix that, magic or otherwise. Curse that ThunderCat and his dog. Curse you Lion-O!" He raised his head toward the ceiling and turned around to head back to his sarcophagus when there was a squishing sound.

"What the?" He looked at his foot and found it covered in none other than dog poop. This was the boiling point for the mummy and he cursed loudly. Now how was he going to clean that up?

**The End**


End file.
